The present invention is related to containers for storing and dispensing liquids, such as beverages, which containers have the ability to nest one within another to be stackable and which incorporate a cleaning system allowing them to be cleaned-in-place.
To be useful, liquid containers and dispensing systems have been required to be small enough to be portable, while at the same time being large enough for sufficient capacity. Liquid containers and dispensers have commonly been of two distinct types the stainless steel pressurized container with a five-gallon capacity, and the disposable xe2x80x9cbag-in-boxxe2x80x9d container of various capacities.
The stainless steel pressurized liquid container and dispenser has historically, or perhaps optimally, been limited to a five-gallon capacity, and is referred to by the accepted abbreviation xe2x80x9cFigal.xe2x80x9d (xe2x80x9cFigalxe2x80x9d containers are generally described in U.S. Pat. No. 3,186,577 to Tennison.) Since xe2x80x9cFigalxe2x80x9d containers are pressurized, five gallons is the maximum amount of liquid that they can hold and still allow for portability.
A xe2x80x9cFigalxe2x80x9d container is usually constructed entirely of stainless steel, with exceptions sometimes for the top and bottom parts of the containers, which can be constructed of resilient materials if desired. (See, for example, U.S. Pat. No. 5,579,912 to Yamamoto.) Since xe2x80x9cFigalxe2x80x9d containers are pressurized, they must be returned to the factory to be cleaned and sanitized before they can be re-used. This creates an inconvenience and is very inefficient.
The xe2x80x9cbag-in-boxxe2x80x9d liquid container and dispenser is less expensive than its xe2x80x9cFigalxe2x80x9d counterpart, but it is disposable and cannot be re-used. (xe2x80x9cBag-in-boxxe2x80x9d containers are generally described in U.S. Pat. No. 5,555,996 to Lang-Ree et al.) The system commonly consists of a plastic bag full of liquid placed inside a plastic crate. When the liquid is emptied from the plastic bag, it cannot be re-filled or re-used, and must be disposed of. This presents an annoying waste disposal problem.
Furthermore, the xe2x80x9cbag-in-boxxe2x80x9d dispensing system can also be difficult to operate due to the fact that a spigot of some sort must be connected to the bag containing liquid. Since there is no pressurization involved in the xe2x80x9cbag-in-boxxe2x80x9d system, the liquid capacities can be greater than 5 gallons. Larger capacities, however, will inhibit portability since the xe2x80x9cbag-in-boxxe2x80x9d systems must be moved and replaced after the container is emptied.
Overall, the xe2x80x9cFigalxe2x80x9d and xe2x80x9cbag-in-boxxe2x80x9d containers do not lend themselves to an efficient system of dispensing liquids. While both types of containers may have the ability to stack one upon another, the containers must be re-arranged every time one of the containers requires re-filling, cleaning, or disposing. There is no general system for controlling or monitoring the dispensing or levels of the liquids in the containers.
The present invention is a modular, stackable, and re-usable liquid container and dispensing system, which can be used in a variety of capacities, and which incorporates an interior cleaning system that allows the interior of the container to be cleaned-in-place, i.e. to have the interior of the container cleaned without moving or transporting the container. The present invention 1) does not require pressurization, 2) it is not required to be moved or transported in order to be cleaned, and 3) it is capable of holding greater capacities of liquid in certain applications than similar prior art containers. Furthermore, two or more containers of the present invention can be stacked one on top of another and connected together to create a system that allows for 1) the efficient dispensing of liquids, 2) for the accurate monitoring of the various liquid levels, and 3) for the central management of the liquid supply process.
The present invention provides for a container having 1) a body to store liquids, 2) an upper protecting wall extending upwards from the top of said body, 3) a lower protecting wall extending downward from said body, and 4) at least one connector port attached to the bottom of said body, surrounded by the lower protecting wall, for filling and emptying the container. Preferably, the container has at least two connector ports, one for filling and emptying the container, and another connector port, connected to a tube which extends into the interior of said body, to allow for the pressure to equalize when filling and emptying.
The lower protecting wall of the container in the present invention is capable of supporting the container in an upright orientation and of nesting within the upper protecting wall of another separate container also designed in accordance with the present invention. This allows for the containers in the present invention to be stacked one upon another to achieve the maximum use of storage space and to efficiently provide for the central monitoring and control of more than one container. The lower protecting wall of the container in the present invention has an opening for access to the connector ports.
When one connector port of the present invention is attached to a tube which extends upwards through the interior of the body of the container to the height just above the top of the fill line of the body, it can be used to equalize the pressure during filling and emptying as well as so that a cleaning liquid can be sent up through the tube, then up and around the interior of the body, thus rinsing and cleaning the interior of the body.
The present invention includes a system for dispensing liquids where a central control module, located apart from the containers, is connected to level sensors on the containers for the purpose of 1) measuring the liquid level inside the bodies of the containers of the present invention, 2) monitoring the flow of liquids from the containers, and 3) controlling the valves attached to the connector ports which controls the flow and discharge of liquids into and out of the containers.
Thus, two or more containers of the present invention can be stacked together and connected together to form a controlled system of liquid dispensing and of monitoring the liquid levels in the various containers. The central control module can be used to generate a signal to indicate the levels of the liquids and to indicate need for cleaning and/or re-filling of the containers.